The Next Generation Finds Inter House Unity
by McShnellyazz
Summary: A shy Gryffindor.  A popular Hufflepuff.  A party animal Ravenclaw.  A Muggle-loving Slytherin.  Follow Rose Weasley, Claire MacMillan, Jenna Chang, and Molly Beckett as they fight stereotypes and discover who they truly are.
1. Prologue

The gray-eyed, curly brown-haired first year girl walked down the train, looking uncertainly into every compartment to find somewhere to sit. She hesitated outside one that contained only two boys, one blond and one with brown hair, who looked to be first years too, but decided to keep going in hopes of finding one that was more empty.

She came at last to the end of the train, and she saw a compartment where a very small girl was sitting alone. She was Asian, and her straight black hair had a streak of lime green in it. The girl in the corridor opened the door.

"Do you mind if I sit with you?" she asked tentatively.

"No problem," the Asian girl said. "I'm Jenna Chang. What's your name?"

"Claire MacMillan."

Soon enough the girls were chatting like old friends. Claire learned that Jenna was an only child and her mum had never married. Jenna learned that Claire came from a family of Hufflepuffs and was expected to carry on the tradition.

The Hogwarts Express pulled into the station, and Jenna and Claire followed the other first years to the boats. They climbed into a boat with a blonde girl who looked unimpressed with their company. The boats headed across the lake and eventually they reached the impressive Hogwarts castle.

The first years climbed out of the boats and were led into a small side chamber. They were greeted by Professor Longbottom, the Deputy Headmaster. He told them to wait there until they were called into the Great Hall to be Sorted.

The students milled about rather awkwardly, since no one really knew each other. Claire was growing nervous. What if she wasn't in Hufflepuff? Her family would be so disappointed. Jenna thought that she would be glad if she even got Sorted at all.

After a few minutes, Professor Longbottom came back and led them into the Great Hall. The Sorting Hat sang a song but Claire was too busy worrying about what House she would be in, not to mention all the students sitting at the House tables and staring at the first years, to pay any attention to it.

When the Hat was finished, Professor Longbottom pulled out a scroll and started calling people to be Sorted.

"Anderson, Jessica!"

"RAVENCLAW!"

"Beckett, Molly!" The blonde girl from the boat walked up and put the Hat on her head.

"HUFFLEPUFF!"

Jenna's name was called after a few more people. The Hat thought for quite a while on her before declaring "SLYTHERIN!"

_Too bad,_ Claire thought as Patrick Chase became the first new Gryffindor, _I was hoping Jenna and I would be in the same House._

She watched as Nathaniel Goldstein, the brown haired boy from the train, was Sorted into Ravenclaw. In what seemed like no time at all, she heard her name.

"MacMillan, Claire!"

She walked up to the front, feeling everyone watching her. She sat on the stool and felt the Hat placed on her head. Suddenly, she heard a little voice in her ear.

"Claire MacMillan. I know your family. Hufflepuffs, aren't they? And you want to follow in their footsteps, make them proud. But I'm not sure Hufflepuff is the right choice for you." Claire's heart was pounding. What did it mean, Hufflepuff wasn't the right choice? "I know you think I'm wrong, but I know you better than you know yourself. Trust me. I do see loyalty there, but even more predominant is your courage. Quiet courage, yes, but there are many different kinds. So I think you belong in GRYFFINDOR!"

Claire knew the last word had been shouted to the whole room, and she made her way to the Gryffindor table, shocked. She tried to process the information while staring unseeingly at Scorpius Malfoy, who joined Jenna at the Slytherin table. Next was Andrew McRae, the blond boy from the train, who was put into Hufflepuff. _She_belonged in Hufflepuff, too, not over here. She wasn't brave.

And she was still deep in thought when Rose Weasley was Sorted into Ravenclaw, and the Sorting Ceremony was over.

* * *

><p>"Molly? Molly Beckett? <em>Nice?<em>We are talking about the same person, Claire, aren't we?"

Claire looked at Rose and Jenna's disbelieving faces. "No, I swear, she really is! Have you ever actually talked to her?"

"No," said Rose. "The 'I'm so much better than you' attitude and 'don't look at me like that you freak' expression on her face are both pretty good turn-offs." Jenna nodded in agreement.

"Well, that's what I thought, too," said Claire, "so when Professor Longbottom put us together for that Venomous Tentacula assignment, I was thinking 'kill me now.' But then I actually talked to her, and she's really nice! We got on really well, and now she always waves at me and smiles in the corridor, and things like that. I mean, you two are so judgmental! Can't you just give her a chance?"

The other two exchanged a glance. "I don't really think I'm cool enough for her," Jenna said rather disparagingly.

"Me neither," said Rose.

Claire rolled her eyes. "That's ridiculous, and you know it. You two are definitely cooler than me, and she talks to me fine. Come on, please? For me?"

It was so rare that Claire ever wanted things that Jenna gave in. "Well, all right."

Claire beamed. "Thank you! Rose?"

Rose sighed. "I suppose so."

"You're brilliant! You won't regret it!"

And indeed they didn't. Molly Beckett proved to be a very nice, funny girl, and Rose and Jenna were quite glad they allowed her to become the fourth member of their trio.

* * *

><p>"Hey Molly!"<p>

Molly Beckett turned around hopefully, then slumped when she saw who it was. "Oh, hi Nathaniel." Out of all the boys in Hogwarts, why did Nathaniel Goldstein have to follow her around? Why couldn't it be Callum Finnigan, or Michael Zabini? Or someone else of their caliber. Even Albus Potter wasn't as big of a nerd as Nathaniel Goldstein.

"I was wondering if maybe you changed your mind about Hogsmeade?" Nathaniel said in a rush. He immediately turned bright red, which didn't flatter him at all.

Molly sighed. "No, Nathaniel, my answer is still the same as last time. And the time before that. And the time before that. And the time—"

"Okay, I get it," Nathaniel said, looking more angry than embarrassed now. "Has anyone ever told you how contemptible you are?" And he stalked off.

"What does that even mean?" Molly yelled after him. She turned to her friends. "Rose?"

"Deserving contempt; despicable. In other words, mean."

"Oh. Well, that's creative!" Molly said, rolling her eyes.

"You _were_a bit harsh, though," Claire said timidly. "Don't you think you should have, you know, let him down a little more gently?"

"I tried that the first four hundred times and it clearly didn't work, so I figured this time I might as well be as clear as I could."

"I do agree with Claire," said Jenna, "but I have to admit it was kind of funny. But anyway, you can't go with him because you're coming with us!"

"Well, actually," Molly said uncomfortably, "I was going to go with Carla Vane and her friends."

Rose's eyebrows shot up abnormally far, but with good reason: Carla Vane and her friends were the popular crowd: the vicious, _contemptible_group of the third year. "But it's the first Hogsmeade trip ever! I thought all four of us were going to go together."

"I know, and I'm sorry," said Molly, and she seemed sincere, "but it is kind of a big deal to get invited somewhere by Carla. I'll go with you lot next time, I promise."

"Oh, that's fine. Just have fun!" Claire said, but Molly was met with stony looks from the other two. She mumbled something about Transfiguration homework and hurried off.

The other three stared at Molly's retreating back. "Definitely a loyal Hufflepuff," Jenna observed.

* * *

><p>A quill fell to the floor beside Claire, barely making a sound. "Hey, Claire, could you hand me that quill? I just dropped it."<p>

Claire turned slightly pink, as she always did when she was addressed by Patrick Chase. "Sure," she said, barely audible. She picked it up and handed it to him, jumping slightly when their hands touched.

He smiled his killer smile at her. "Thanks." He went back to taking notes, running his hand through his red hair.

Claire sighed. She'd had a crush on Patrick for almost a year now, and doubted she'd ever love anyone else, which her friends assured her was a ridiculous thing to think. But after all this time, none of the feelings she had when he was nearby showed any sign of stopping. How could she get over him anytime soon?

The bell rang to signal break, and she went out to the courtyard to meet Jenna, Rose, and Molly.

"What's the matter?" asked Molly, for Claire was quiet and thoughtful. "Is it Patrick?" Claire nodded. "What happened?"

"He dropped his quill and I picked it up for him, and he smiled at me."

A year ago, the other three would have said something like "And you got all worked up over something as simple as that?" Now, however, they knew that for shy Claire, even the smallest interaction was a big deal.

"He smiled at you?" Jenna said interestedly. "You know, I think he might like you."

"No way," scoffed Claire. "Who's ever heard of a Quidditch player falling for the quiet bookworm in the back of the classroom?"

"I certainly haven't," Rose said rather tactlessly. Realizing her mistake, she quickly added, "But there's always a first time. Besides, Albus says he talks about how smart you are all the time." This was actually true.

"I've never heard him say that," Claire said.

"Well, of course not!" said Molly. "Boys don't compliment girls to their faces." The other two nodded vigorously, though they weren't quite sure that was true. "What you've got to do, Claire, is _talk to him._"

"I can't!"

"Just say hi once in a while! Or even just smile when he walks by in the corridor!"

"I've told you millions of times, I've tried to do that, but I just can't!"

"Are you a Gryffindor or not?"

"Definitely not. I've no idea what the Hat was thinking. Quiet strength, indeed!"  
>The other three didn't much understand the extreme introvertedness of their friend, but they knew enough that it was pointless to argue with her when she was in one of these moods.<p>

"Fine," said Rose. "But you can at least talk to him when he initiates the conversation, right?"

"Usually."

"Then just stick to that, and before you know it you guys will be friends!"

"I doubt it, but all right."

Luckily, the bell rang just then, putting an end to the pointless conversation.

* * *

><p>Jenna walked into Slughorn's office for her career advice session.<p>

"Ah, Miss Chang! How are you?"

"Fine, sir. And you?"

"Excellent, excellent. Let's get started, then! Have you any idea what you want to do outside of Hogwarts?"

Jenna had thought about this a lot recently, what with all the pamphlets lying around the Slytherin Common Room. But her answer was always the same. "No."

"An Auror, perhaps? Or a Healer?"

Jenna shrugged, pushing a strand of green hair out of her face. She had started with one green streak in her first year and added more and more over time, so now her hair was entirely green, to the chagrin of her mother. "I don't know."

"Law Enforcement? Department of Mysteries? Quidditch?"

"I don't play Quidditch, sir."

Slughorn was getting frustrated. "International relations? Games and Sports Department? Professor?"

"I don't know."

"What are your interests, then?"

"Er…I like to listen to music."

"Anything else?"

"I don't know."

Slughorn threw up his hands. "Jenna, Jenna, Jenna! Help me out here!"

"I don't know what to do!" Now Jenna was getting frustrated. "I have no ambition! I don't know why I'm in Slytherin!" The feeling that she didn't belong in her house was one of the things that could work Jenna up enough to show much emotion.

"Now, now, don't say that," Slughorn said reprovingly, all irritation gone. "The Hat had its reasons, and I'm sure you will discover them in time. Now back to the matter at hand. If you could only pick five classes to continue next year, what would they be?"

Jenna thought a moment. "Potions, Transfiguration, Charms, Defense Against the Dark Arts, and Muggle Studies, I suppose."

"Well, then, aim to get O.W.L.s in those five areas so you can take all those classes next year. I'd say you'd be well-rounded enough that there would be plenty of options for you once you leave Hogwarts, if you take those classes."

"All right. I'll do that, sir."

"Good, good. You may go."

Jenna thanked him and left. She walked down corridors until she reached the Muggle Studies classroom. She was annoyed that she'd missed half of it for that waste of time otherwise known as a meeting. Muggle Studies was one of her favorite classes; she found Muggles to be fascinating.

Jenna sat down in her usual seat next to Andrew McRae. None of her friends took Muggle studies—Molly was Muggleborn, and both Rose and Claire had a set of grandparents that were Muggles—so Jenna had gotten to know Andrew pretty well over the past few years.

"How did it go?" he whispered.

"Miserable. Slughorn kept asking me over and over again, "What do you want? What do you want?" and then got upset when I said I didn't know. Next year I'm going to take a bunch of core classes that should make me 'well-rounded enough that there would be plenty of options for me once I leave Hogwarts.'

Andrew chuckled. "You're not dropping Muggle Studies, I hope?"

"Of course not!"

"Good, I'd miss you. There aren't many other times a Hufflepuff like me can talk to a Slytherin like you. And you're probably the first Slytherin ever to take Muggle Studies!"

* * *

><p>"Rose, you should be studying! There's a reason sixth years have breaks, you know."<p>

Rose opened her eyes to glare at her cousin Molly. "Don't tell me what to do, you're younger than me! Besides, I don't want to study. If I'd had it my way, I wouldn't even be here right now. Pity Mum wouldn't let me drop out."

"Rose!" Molly reprimanded. "Don't talk like that! What do you hope to do with your life without a full education, exactly?"

"Have fun!" Rose declared.

Molly gave her up as a lost cause and went back to her homework.

Rose looked around at all the other students hard at work, and she admitted to herself that she often felt out of place in the Ravenclaw common room. Everyone was so serious and so _scholarly_all the time. She was glad she wasn't in Gryffindor with all her cousins breathing down her neck and ruining her fun, or in Hufflepuff with all the goody two-shoes, but she was often envious of Jenna in Slytherin. She heard they threw some pretty wild parties.

Feeling uncomfortable in the quiet, studious atmosphere of the room, Rose stood up and went outside. She wandered the corridor, not exactly having a destination in mind, when she ran smack into someone.

"Watch it, Weasley." It was Scorpius Malfoy.

"Oh, don't play those games with me," Rose scoffed at him. "I know you don't hate me anymore. Why don't you just admit it?"

He grinned. "How did you know? One day last year I said to myself, why do you hate Rose? What's she ever done to you personally? And I didn't have an answer, so that was the end of that. I do my best to keep up appearances, though. Very shrewd of you to figure it out. But what else would I expect from the Ravenclaw daughter of Hermione Granger?"

Rose frowned. "If I belonged in Ravenclaw I'd be in their common room studying, not wandering around out here, and I am _nothing_like my mum."

"I know," Scorpius laughed. "I just like seeing you get all worked up. It's rather amusing."

"Oh, go away," Rose grumbled. "I'm not in a mood for you right now." And she stalked off, Scorpius's laugh echoing in her ears.

* * *

><p><strong>I've had the idea for this story for a while and I'm excited to start writing it! It'll be about ten chapters in total. Hope you like it!<strong>


	2. Jenna Finds Her Slytherin Ambition

**I just realized that Molly Beckett has the same name as Molly Weasley II, who was in the last chapter. Sorry about any confusion! From now on Molly Beckett will be probably the only Molly in this story.  
><strong>

* * *

><p>Jenna Chang walked into the Muggle Studies classroom. She was always in a good mood when going to her favorite class, but that day she was especially excited because their N.E.W.T. class was studying Muggle literature, and they'd started <em>Pride and Prejudice<em>, which was written by a Muggle named Jane Austen that Jenna had vaguely heard of, the week before. So far Jenna really liked the book, and she was eager to read more in class that day.

She sat down beside Andrew McRae, as she had been doing for the past four years. "Hi, Andrew," she said cheerfully.

He smiled back at her. "Hey. Enjoying the book so far?"

"Oh, yeah, I love it! You?"

He shrugged. "Bit girly, but not all that bad."

She laughed. "No, you love it too. I can tell."

He looked sheepish. "Yeah, all right, I do love it. What gave me away?"

"Hufflepuffs are horrid liars, and Slytherins can detect even the most skilled ones."

Before Andrew could defend his house, Professor Fogarty called the class to order. "All right, class, I would like you to read the next chapter of _Pride and Prejudice_ with a partner. Your homework is to finish this chapter."

There was a rustling of pages as everyone found their place, and eventually the classroom was filled with the murmur of voices.

"So, how do you want to read this?" Andrew asked.

"Alternate paragraphs?"

"All right. You start."

And they began reading. Jenna could tell this was going to be an interesting chapter, because Mr. Darcy showed up when Elizabeth was alone, and he was acting very odd. Jenna greatly admired Elizabeth, although she wished she'd realize Mr. Darcy was the man for her a little faster than she was at the current point in the book.

Then, Andrew read out a line of Mr. Darcy's that would change Elizabeth's life forever. "You must allow me to tell you how ardently I admire and love you."

Andrew glanced up slightly as he read this and looked at Jenna. Suddenly, Jenna felt herself overpowered with emotion. All she could think about was Andrew. His curly, dark blond hair, his almond-shaped blue eyes, his soft voice, his amiable smile, she saw everything in a new light. Jenna had no idea how it happened, but at that moment, she knew that she loved Andrew.

* * *

><p>Jenna sat down at the Gryffindor table at dinner, thinking. She had managed to make her way through Muggle Studies and the rest of the day without betraying any emotion. That was, after all, another Slytherin skill she prided herself on having. All day, that one sentence had been running through her mind. The sentence that had changed not only Elizabeth Bennet's life, but Jenna's as well. <em>You must allow me to tell you how ardently I admire and love you.<em>

She'd thought about Andrew all day, and her mind had finally settled on a solution, which was why she was sitting next to Claire. Claire and Jenna had always had an especially close bond, because they had become friends right off the bat, and they always confided things in each other before telling Rose and Molly.

"Hey, Jen," said Claire. She was also the only one who could get away with calling Jenna "Jen." "Are you all right? You've seemed kind of quiet all day."

"I am all right," said Jenna, "but I have to tell you something."

"What is it?"

It was much harder to say than Jenna had thought it would be. "Well, you see, er..."

"Do you like someone finally?" Claire, Rose, and Molly were determined that Jenna should like someone before she graduated Hogwarts.

"Actually, yes."

Claire's eyes widened. "Really? Who?"

Jenna took a deep breath. "Andrew McRae."

Claire squealed and hugged Jenna, who wriggled out of her arms. Jenna didn't care for hugs. "It's not that big of a deal, Claire, honestly. Calm down."

"Jenna, I can't believe it! You and Andrew would make such a cute couple!"

Jenna was disgruntled. She didn't care for cute either. "I was looking for something with a little more substance than 'cute.' Anyway, all I know is that I will get him if it's the last thing I do."

Claire stared at her. That was probably the only time she had heard Jenna speak with any sort of decisiveness. "Spoken like a true Slytherin. If you'd had that much ambition during your career advice session, maybe Slughorn would've invited you to his Christmas party."

Jenna rolled her eyes. "What do I care about a Christmas party? Although..." Claire could see her brain formulating a plan. "Andrew was invited...and as far as I know he doesn't have a date yet..."

* * *

><p><strong>This chapter strikes me as kind of cheesy...I'd appreciate knowing who agrees or disagrees with me. In other words, I'd really love some reviews :)<br>**


	3. Parties, Muggles, and Slytherins

**It has come to my attention that I am really forgetful when it comes to disclaimers. So for the last chapters I do not own Harry Potter or Pride and Prejudice. I think I'll just put a general disclaimer in my profile...**

* * *

><p>Like the Slytherin she was, Jenna watched and waited. She was watching and waiting for the perfect moment to hint to Andrew that she would make a good date to Slughorn's party. But the day of the party came, and she still hadn't found this moment. She was getting rather desperate, and she figured he must have a date by then, but it was worth one last shot.<p>

Luckily for Jenna, that morning she, Claire, and Rose were having breakfast at the Hufflepuff table with Molly, and Andrew happened to be sitting with them and joining in on the conversation. Jenna was about to subtly turn the topic around to the party but Claire, dear, sweet, wonderful Claire, beat her to it.

"Who was invited to Slughorn's Christmas party here?" she asked.

"I was," said Rose, rolling her eyes. "I'm tired of being invited to things only because my parents are famous, but Albus told me it would be rude not to go, so I'm going."

"I'm going as well," said Molly. "Don't know why, though."

"He probably thinks you have potential to be famous, and he wants to get on your good side so he'll benefit once you are," said Jenna.

"That's what I thought when he invited me," said Andrew. "I couldn't think of any other reason he'd want me there. I'm not famous, or important, or anything like that."

_You are to me,_ thought Jenna. But the only thing she said was, "I imagine you've all got dates, since the party's today."

Molly nodded. "I'm going with Callum Finnigan." Jenna grinned. Trust Molly to get a date with the most popular guy in their year.

"I didn't know who to invite," said Rose. "I was going to take one of you, Claire and Jenna, but then I thought that whoever I didn't invite would be mad, plus if I showed up with a girl as my date, people might, you know, take it the wrong way." She paused as the others snickered here. "So then I was going to take a male cousin, but I realized _that_ could be taken the wrong way too."

"So what did you do?" asked Andrew, still laughing.

"Well, I was complaining about my predicament to Scorpius in Transfiguration the other day, and he said 'Oh, Rose, you sad creature. I think I'll take pity on you and be your date, just to save you from social ruin.' So then I, quite insulted, said 'Going alone would better benefit my social status than going with you' and he said 'Rose, here's a life lesson for you: if someone comes along with a solution to your problems, _you take it._' So then I said 'Fine, I'll go with you.' I didn't really know how _I_ ended up agreeing to go with _him_ when I'm the one who was invited in the first place, but for once in my life, I decided to listen to his advice."

Jenna, Claire, and Molly exchanged a look. They were of the opinion that Rose had had a secret crush on Scorpius for years, but Rose always denied it. Maybe they could get something out of her after the party.

"What about you, Andrew?" Jenna asked, trying not to sound too interested.

Andrew shrugged. "I was going to ask someone, but I couldn't get up the nerve, so I'll probably just go alone."

Jenna's heart sank. There was someone else. Of course there was. "Who were you going to ask?"

"You."

At first Jenna thought he was joking, but he was turning slightly red and looked genuinely embarrassed.

"Oh," she said. "I would've said yes. That's what friends do for each other."

"Yeah. Friends." Andrew looked disappointed, and Jenna cursed herself silently. "So, Jenna, will you go to Slughorn's party with me?"

Jenna smiled, thinking that something had finally gone right. "Of course."

* * *

><p>The four girls sat on and around Rose's bed in the Ravenclaw dormitory. Ever since the Battle of Hogwarts, the school had been a lot keener on promoting inter house unity. As a result of this, it became a regular occurrence for students to visit other House common rooms.<p>

Now, they were getting ready for Slughorn's party. Claire was the only one who wasn't going, but she didn't mind. She didn't really care for parties too much anyway. She had come to watch them all leave for the party, and, of course, to take part in the conversations that took place beforehand.

"So, we're all going with our dream dates," said Molly. "Me with Callum, Rose with Scorpius, and Jenna with Andrew." Jenna had told Molly and Rose about Andrew a few days after telling Claire, and had been met with a similar reaction from the two of them.

"Scorpius Malfoy is _not _my dream date," Rose said indignantly.

"Don't even try that anymore, Rose," Molly said with a smirk. "Why would you have agreed to go with him if you hate him as much as you pretend to?"

Rose couldn't think of an answer to this, or maybe she just knew it was no use anymore, and she plopped down on her bed in defeat.

The girls gossiped happily as they finished getting ready, and then it was time to go. Claire thought that all her friends looked quite good as she observed them all.

Molly was as stunning as ever in a strapless semi formal red dress. Her hair was up in a knot, and she wore lots of jewelry and makeup, as well as a pair of high heels.

Jenna was dressed less elaborately in a simple black dress that made her green hair stand out even more than usual, and she wore black flats and no jewelry.

Rose, who hated getting dressed up for anything, was the biggest surprise of all. She was wearing a dark blue dress that, according to her friends, "matched her eyes," to which she just snorted. She had on a necklace from which an R hung, in case she forgot her name after getting drunk on Butterbeer. She wore silver sandals with a slight heel.

"All your dates are going to faint when they see you," Claire said, smiling.

The other three laughed, and on that note they left for the party.

* * *

><p>Unfortunately, Claire's words did not come true, but all three boys did look impressed when their dates reached them. As they entered Slughorn's office, where the party was, Callum told Molly she looked beautiful, Scorpius told Rose it was quite a change to see her wearing something halfway decent for once, and Andrew just smiled and told Jenna she looked nice.<p>

At the party, Molly and Callum headed off somewhere right off the bat. Rose and Scorpius mingled with the other two for a while, but soon enough Rose decided Jenna and Andrew needed some time alone, and she dragged Scorpius over to the refreshment table.

Feeling abandoned and slightly awkward, Jenna and Andrew remained where they were, each trying to think of something to say.

"So," said Jenna.

"How 'bout them Mets?" said Andrew. Jenna stared at him and he grinned. "It's an expression American Muggles use sometimes when there's an awkward silence in conversation. The Mets are a baseball team."

Jenna nodded. She knew about baseball from Muggle Studies. "How do you know that?"

"My dad's an American Muggle," he said simply.

"Really?"

"Yeah. He went to university over here, though, and that's where he met my mum." Jenna also knew about the Muggle school system from Muggle Studies.

"That's really interesting." Then something dawned on her for the first time. "But if your parents are Muggles, why do you take Muggle Studies?"

He shrugged. "At first, it was because I wasn't really interested in too many of the options, when we had to pick classes at the end of second year, and I thought it would be an easy class, but after a year I found out it was really interesting, and pretty entertaining too, to learn about something I'd taken for granted my whole life, and watch everyone else in the class act like it was the most amazing thing. And, of course, I liked my seat partner," he added, smiling at her.

Jenna blushed. "Well, I'm glad you took that class. Everyone else there resented me when we first started. They assumed I was one of the pureblood obsessed Slytherins. The other houses don't seem to understand that it's only a few Slytherins who are like that. We're not all bad. It's not our fault that some evil wizards were in our house. The only things we have in common with those wizards are what the Sorting Hat said: ambition and cunning. And the other Houses seem to think those traits are bad. They exclude us from everything, they hate all of us, because a few Slytherins in history went bad."

Andrew stared at her. He'd never heard Jenna speak with such emotion.

She was now quite embarrassed. "Sorry," she mumbled. "It's just, that's always bothered me, and whenever I try to tell anyone, they don't listen."

"It's okay," Andrew assured her. "I agree with everything you said. It's not fair. None of it. All this bias. I mean, everyone says Slytherins are biased against Muggleborns, and yet here you are, head of our Muggle Studies class, friends with several Muggleborns. It's really the other Houses that are biased against Slytherins. And I'm sorry to say that before I met you, I was biased too. But you're different, Jenna. You make me see things I never saw before, and think of things I never would have imagined. You are, without a doubt, one of the most amazing people I've ever met."

Jenna could hardly believe what she was hearing. And then, before she could embarrass herself by making an equally mushy speech, she surprised herself. She leaned over and kissed him.

Operation Andrew complete.

* * *

><p><strong>Hmm, I guess I should've known a Slytherin appreciation speech would end up in a story of mine sooner or later. Oh, and the "how 'bout them Mets" thing, I don't know if lots of Americans actually do say that, but it's something my friends and I do a lot, so I had to put it in at this opportunity! Let's see...next up are Claire's chapters.<br>**


	4. Claire Finds Her Gryffindor Courage

**I added a scene at the end to (hopefully) improve this chapter, so I'd appreciate it if anyone who read it before would read the new part!**

* * *

><p>As January came, the seventh years found themselves having more work piled on them than ever, particularly in Transfiguration. They were practicing Human Transfiguration. It hadn't seemed so hard in sixth year and the beginning of seventh year when they only had to transfigure a little at a time, but now each student was paired up with a classmate and had to fully transfigure their partner into a bird. Now Human Transfiguration seemed very difficult indeed.<p>

Even Claire was having trouble, and she was the best Transfiguration student in the year. Of course, the difficulties she was facing may have been more due to the fact that she was partnered with Patrick Chase than problems with the actual magic.

Four years, and she still hadn't gotten over him. She still had never worked up enough nerve to really talk to him either. But ever since Jenna had had success with Andrew, Claire had become determined that she would have a conversation with him before leaving school, because then she would probably never see him again.

But now she had to concentrate. She ignored all her emotions and just focused on the spell. She pointed her wand at him, her face screwed up in effort, and muttered the incantation. Slowly, Patrick began to change, becoming smaller and growing feathers until he had been fully transformed into a bird. Claire gasped. She'd done it! She was the first in the class to succeed!

After being awarded twenty points by the professor, Claire concentrated hard again and, after three tries, turned Patrick back to himself. He looked slightly relieved, but also very impressed.

"Claire! You did it! Well done!" he exclaimed.

"Thanks," she said, beaming. It wasn't every day he said something like that to her. "Your turn now."

"I'll try, but I don't think I'll be able to do it," he said. "I'm rubbish at Transfiguration."

"No, of course you aren't. You wouldn't be in this class if you were, would you?" Most people would think nothing of this statement, but Claire was amazed at her own boldness.

"I suppose," he said, still somewhat doubtful. "Well, I might as well get a move on."

Patrick spent the whole rest of the class trying to do the spell, but as he had predicted, he didn't succeed. When the bell rang, Claire normally would've left without another word, but her newfound confidence allowed her to leave class with Patrick, saying words of encouragement about his Transfiguration abilities.

They had break next, so the two of them lingered in the hall, unwilling to go outside in the cold weather. "I wish I could do it," Patrick was saying. "Like you. Or like all the others that managed it today."

"Only a few people did," Claire pointed out. "Most people couldn't do it." Realizing that she sounded like she was boasting, she backtracked. "Well, no, that's not what I meant. I mean...um..."

Patrick chuckled. "Claire, we both know you're the smartest person in our year, you needn't bother being modest about it."

Blushing furiously, she mumbled, "But I'm not! There are lots of people who are smarter, like Rose, for example, or-"

"But Rose doesn't try in school. She lets her brains go to waste. I still say you're the smartest."

Claire shrugged. She had to admit he had a point about Rose. Knowing it was futile to argue further, she changed the subject. "But what about you? I mean, you're the best Quidditch player in the whole school! You've been the Gryffindor captain since, what, only fourth year?"

He nodded. "So what, though? I'll play professional Quidditch for a few years, and then I'll be too old to play, and I won't be able to do anything for the rest of my life."

"You'll have earned enough gold to retire young, though."

"Gold's not everything. The point is that at first being good at Quidditch seems great, but in the long run brains are much more worthwhile. Just imagine where we'll be twenty years from now. I'll be sitting around doing nothing, a good Quidditch player gone to seed, and you'll have a nice steady job, and a family, and you'll probably discover some sort of cure for something, and-"

"Okay," Claire said, "but that isn't the point either. The point is that you want to learn how to do Human Transfiguration."

"Oh," said Patrick. Claire could tell that in his attempts to convince her she was better than him, he'd forgotten about how the conversation had started. "Right."

"I can try and help you, if you want." Claire's heart was pounding. She'd just had her first real conversation with him ever, and as soon as she made the offer, it felt like too much. What if he said no, or got mad at her? She should've quit while she was ahead. She was never going to listen to that so-called confidence again.

But to her relief he smiled. "Seriously? That'd be great!"

"Sure," she said, nodding. "So, the library at...I don't know...seven tonight?"

"Yeah, that works. Thanks so much, Claire! See you tonight!" And with that, he departed.

Claire leaned against the wall, all the previous adrenaline gone. She couldn't quite believe what had just happened. Somehow in the past hour, she'd gone from being silent whenever Patrick was around to offering to help him with schoolwork. Almost like a friend would. How had she done it? Adjusting her bag on her shoulder, Claire went off to find her friends, thinking that for the first time since the Sorting Hat had said it, she thought maybe she knew what "quiet courage" was.

As it turned out, she had more time to think about her place in Gryffindor that afternoon. Claire was walking down a corridor when she heard the voices.

"They're all so pathetic. That Chang girl, she always acts so innocent, but we all know she's got ulterior motives, just like her mum. My parent's've told me all about her mum." Claire realized they were talking about _Jenna._ Despite it being the most absurd statement she'd ever heard, Claire felt herself growing angry. No one talked about her friends like that. She kept listening.

"And Claire MacMillan. She's the most pathetic of all. Always chasing after Patrick, as if she could ever have a chance. Everyone knows he's interested in _me._"

Claire grew pale. Was she that obvious? And was it true that Patrick liked Carla Vane? For she had recognized the voice. She couldn't place who the murmurs of agreement belonged to, but she assumed they were some other members of Carla's posse.

"Molly Beckett was so promising, back when we started at Hogwarts. But then she started hanging around with _that_ crowd. But she still thinks we like her. What a fool. All those times she tags along with us to Hogsmeade. _So_ annoying."

Claire was really upset now. She hated people that pretended to like someone only to talk badly about them behind their back, which was apparently what Carla had been doing to Molly all along.

"Rose Weasley too. 'Oh, Rose, she's _such_ a lovely girl, turned out so well, but what would you expect? Her parents _are_ Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger.' Ha! I don't know if I've ever seen anyone less well turned out. She's a lazy, good for nothing-"

Carla didn't get to finish her sentence, for Claire, having had enough, walked around the corner. "Oh, Claire, I didn't see you there," she said, smirking.

Claire was sorely tempted to slap Carla across the face, but she was a firm believer in the philosophy that words held unknowable amounts of power. "How dare you. How _dare_ you! How dare you talk about my friends like that? I'll have you know that they are a thousand times better than you. The world hates people like you, the people that talk about people behind their backs, and yet don't have enough brain cells to realize that everyone else is doing the same thing to them. It's the people like you that don't get anywhere in life, not people like my friends. I hope you get everything that's coming to you and more, Carla, I really do!" And with that she stormed off, leaving a shocked silence in her wake.

Claire smiled to herself. That had felt good.

* * *

><p><strong>Still not my favorite, but I think it's much better than it was. And this confrontation may prove useful in later chapters...<br>**


	5. Study Buddies and Birthday Presents

Claire glanced at her watch again. Nearly seven. She should start heading towards the library. She smoothed her hair, looking in the mirror. She saw a girl that looked like her, but somehow Claire couldn't associate the person in the mirror with herself. That girl looked confident; Claire was not.

She gave herself a mental shake and, coming out of her reverie, exited the dormitory, then walked through the Gryffindor common room and out the portrait hole. Every step brought her closer to the library, and every step also increased her nervousness.

Finally, Claire found herself standing outside the library. She took a deep breath and walked in. She looked around, but Patrick wasn't there yet. Claire settled down at a table by a window overlooking the lake. She sat there for what felt like hours. She started to worry. What if he wasn't coming? What if he'd only pretended to want her help so that he could make a fool of her?

Just as she became convinced this was true, Patrick himself appeared around the nearest bookshelf, smiled when he saw her, and sat down across from her. "Sorry, I lost track of the time and ran Quidditch practice a bit late."

"Oh, no problem. I only just got here myself," she lied. She didn't quite know why she'd said that. Was it to make him feel better, or herself? _Claire, focus. We're here to do work,_ she told herself sternly.

And so Claire began tutoring Patrick in the art of Transfiguration. She had him run through the basics of Human Transfiguration again, then practice the spell they'd worked on in class. Over and over again he did it, and over and over again he failed. He was getting increasingly frustrated, as was Claire, but she was too polite to show it.

"One more time," Claire encouraged him. "I know you can do it!"

"Ten thousandth time lucky, then?" Patrick asked, smiling slightly. But he tried the spell anyway.

Claire felt an odd prickling sensation all over her body. She looked down at herself and saw that there were feathers growing out of her skin. She looked up again, and her surroundings were growing larger and larger, until she had to tilt her head all the way back to see Patrick's face. It wasn't everything else that had gotten bigger, it was her that had gotten smaller. About the size of a bird.

She looked at herself again, and sure enough she was a bird. She raised her arms, and saw two wings coming up. She tried to smile, but it didn't work quite right. She looked at Patrick and tried to say "congratulations," but all that came out was a chirp.

Patrick was smiling broadly. "I did it!" he said, but quietly so as not to disturb the silence in the library. "Now if I can only manage to turn you back into a human..."

It took a while, but eventually Claire was back to normal. "That was brilliant!" she exclaimed softly. "Well done!" She wanted to hug him, but restrained herself.

"Thanks," he said, looking pleased. "Now I just need to do that essay about the theory behind it...will you help me?"

"Of course."

So she did, and when the essay was completed in top form, the two of them walked back to the Gryffindor common room together. As they went through the portrait hole, laughing, Claire saw Carla Vane look up from where she was sitting. When she saw them, she looked as though she'd been slapped in the face. Feeling happy, confident, and not a little triumphant, Claire bade Patrick good night and headed up to her dormitory.

* * *

><p>"Wow, Claire, that's amazing!"<p>

Claire, Jenna, Molly, and Rose were sitting at the Hufflepuff table the next morning, and Claire had just recounted the story of the day before to a very stunned and appreciative audience. She had, however, omitted the part about Carla Vane, as she didn't want to upset her friends by telling them what Carla had said about them, particularly Molly.

"I know!" Molly said in agreement with Rose. "What's gotten into you? Only two days ago you wouldn't even consider talking to Patrick. And now look at you!"

"I suppose so," said Claire.

Jenna just looked at her friend, and marveled at how different the scared little girl from the train she had met six years ago was from the smiling, confident seventeen-year-old now sitting in front of her.

* * *

><p>But Claire was not a seventeen-year-old for long. January twenty fifth brought her eighteenth birthday, and all day she received good-natured birthday members from various friends and acquaintances.<p>

That evening, her three best friends visited her in Gryffindor Tower. "Happy birthday, Claire!" they cried, bursting into the dormitory and each handing her a present.

Claire smiled. "Thanks." She opened the gifts. From Molly there was a silver necklace (Claire appreciated that the elaborate-jewelery-loving Molly had, for once, given her friend something she would actually wear), from Rose a bag of assorted Weasley's Wizard Wheezes products (Claire suspected that Rose would end up using these anyways, as she was the most prone to pranks out of the three), and Jenna gave her a copy of _Pride and Prejudice_, saying Claire would like it, and a picture frame containing a moving photograph of the foursome from their last Hogsmeade trip (Claire had secretly wanted to read _Pride and Prejudice_ after Jenna's description of it, and she loved the photograph far more than the frame).

Claire thanked them all again, assuring them that she loved all the presents, and then her three friends all hugged her, even Rose, who was generally not one for hugs. She had always claimed this was due to all the hugging that went on at Weasley family reunions. Her friends, who had been to one a few Christmases ago, could not disagree.

"I'd better go," said Claire, after a while of socializing. "It's nearly seven-Patrick will be waiting for me." Amid a chorus of "ooh, Patrick"s from her friends, Claire departed. The others soon followed her, not wanting to be on their own in a dormitory none of them lived in.

As Claire reached the library, the nerves she had experienced at the beginning of the homework-helping arrangement were gone, replaced by a feeling of happy anticipation. She walked down a few aisles of bookshelves and found Patrick sitting at their table, looking deep in thought.

She sat down across from him. "Hi," she said. He returned her greeting, his preoccupied expression vanishing, and they set to work. He had long since reached a point where he didn't need her help anymore, and yet he said "Same time tomorrow, yeah?" at the end of every day. Claire couldn't deny that this made her hope that perhaps he actually did enjoy her company.

At long last they finished up a particularly difficult Potions essay, and Claire packed up her bag. When she finished she stood up, as did Patrick. Every day she waited anxiously for him to say they would meet again tomorrow, because she worried one day he'd say he didn't need her help anymore, and that day was no different. He opened his mouth to speak, but what he said was quite unexpected.

"Happy birthday, Claire."

"Thank you," she said, slightly surprised. She didn't know he knew it was her birthday.

"I was going to get you something, but I couldn't find anything good enough."

She blushed slightly. Was he implying what she thought he was? No, he couldn't be. Didn't boys usually just say what they were thinking and not bother with hints? "You didn't have to get me anything."

He nodded, but didn't say anything. She waited for a few moments, and was about to say "see you later" and leave when he spoke again.

"You know, this is kind of difficult, but I have to say something before we leave Hogwarts and never see each other again. See, the thing is, I kind of...like you. Ever since this year, when we had Transfiguration together, and when we started really talking to each other. I realized that you're not just the quiet girl in the corner. There's a lot more to you than I'd thought." He paused, looking embarrassed, and waited for her to say something.

Claire couldn't believe her ears. She'd always thought things like this only happened in stories. Surely they didn't actually happen to people, and especially not to her. But yet, here she was, having the sort of conversation with Patrick Chase that she'd dreamed of for years. She said, "Patrick, I've liked you for ages. Four years, actually. I never thought this would ever happen!"

He looked stunned, then relieved. "So, will you go out with me?"

Claire said the same thing she always said when he asked her for a favor. "Of course."

* * *

><p><strong>Fast update, hooray! Unfortunately there won't be many of those for a while now, as I'm going away for the next two weeks (to the UK!) and the week after that I have band camp. I'll have a week after that and then school starts...sigh. So yeah. I may get another chapter up this week though. Molly next. Yes, I am deliberately saving Rose for last :)<strong>


	6. Molly Finds Her Hufflepuff Loyalty

The first Hogsmeade weekend in April came upon Molly Beckett rather suddenly. She woke up the morning of, and realized that she didn't have a date and that Carla Vane hadn't asked her to go with her crowd. She'd have to go with Rose, Claire, and Jenna.

Molly sighed. She loved her three friends, but they were just so...eccentric. Molly felt like people were always judging her when they saw her with them. Especially Carla. Well, Molly supposed, they could make it a quick trip and get back to the castle before her reputation fell upon too much harm.

When she suggested this idea to her friends (though she put the reason down to a homework overload), they agreed readily, and planned to just stop in the Three Broomsticks for a quick drink.

The girls had been sitting for a few minutes when they heard a voice saying, "Molly, darling!"

Four heads swiveled around to look at Carla Vane, who was standing beside their table with her posse behind her.

"Hi," said Molly, smiling. While it wasn't as good as a date with Callum Finnigan, being approached by Carla was certainly a nice development in her afternoon. "How's your Hogsmeade trip been so far?"

"Not bad," said Carla. She cast a disdainful glance at Molly's companions. "Better, than yours, I'm sure."

Molly felt suddenly uncomfortable. She knew her two groups of friends didn't exactly run in the same social circles, but they'd never openly insulted each other like this before. She didn't really know how to respond, so she kept silent, not failing to notice the dirty looks Rose, Claire, and Jenna were giving Carla.

Carla plowed on. "Which is why we came to ask you if you wanted to come hang out with us. I mean, it's really nice of you to keep them company, but it might be kinder if you just let them realize that no one likes them."

Molly was filled with a blazing anger. She looked around at her friends. Green-haired Jenna was absentmindedly licking Butterbeer foam off her lips while glaring at Carla. Shy Claire seemed to be attempting to hide from Carla behind her hair. Rose, who'd gone to some wild party the night before, looked slightly hungover, but even she had it pulled together enough to look angry.

Then she looked at Carla and her friends. She saw how they were all smirking like they were the coolest people on earth, and she realized how wrong she'd been. No matter how popular they were, those girls were not her friends. They were petty and shallow, and Molly couldn't believe she'd ever liked them. Jenna, Claire, and Rose may have been an odd bunch, but they were true, loyal friends who were always there for Molly. Could Molly say the same thing about herself? She was the Hufflepuff of the four, and yet she was the least loyal out of all of them. She felt sick as she saw her friends looking afraid that she was going to ditch them. She remembered all the times she'd left them to go hang out with Carla. What was her problem?

Molly stood up and turned to face Carla. "Well, the nicest thing for me to do right now would be to keep _you_ company so you'd think people like you, but I'm not feeling generous. These are my _friends_, Carla. I don't know where you've been, but I'd like it if you went back there. I'd like it a lot." And with that she sat down. She knew it wasn't the most epic speech in the world, but, seeing her friends' smiles, it made her feel like she was on her way to making it up to them.

Carla was angry. "First Claire, now you," she hissed. "I'm tired of all you _freaks_ thinking you can just walk up to people and mouth off." This was so hypocritical a statement that no one bothered to acknowledge it. "For the record, _Molly,_ none of us even liked you in the first place. You've always been so annoying, but we had to hang out with you sometimes. You know, to keep up appearances."

Molly was surprised, and also a little hurt. She knew she shouldn't care what they thought, but it wasn't exactly pleasant to find out that the girls who'd pretended to be her friends had actually hated her for the entire seven years. Carla's last sentence also left a sour taste in Molly's mouth: it reminded her all too well of the way of thinking she'd followed for her entire Hogwarts career. Until a few minutes ago, of course.

Carla and her friends flounced out before any one of the foursome could say anything. "Well," said Molly, breaking the silence. "If you hadn't let me into your group back in second year, I'd been in a tight spot right now as far as amount of friends is concerned."

Just like that, the whole thing was over and everyone was laughing like the encounter was the funniest thing that had ever happened to them.

"You were brilliant!" exclaimed Claire, apparently forgetting she'd done the same thing to Carla a few months previously.

"What goes around, comes around," said Jenna wisely. She was quite fond of Muggle sayings.

"Did you see her face?" Rose asked gleefully, all traces of a bad night gone. "Priceless!"

"Yeah, well, I figured she had it coming," said Molly modestly. Then her tone turned serious. "Look, I'm really, really sorry for all the times I ditched you lot to go hang out with them. I realize now what an idiot I've been, and how much I've hurt you, and I hope you can forgive me."

"Of course we do," said Claire warmly. "You're our friend. Friends forgive each other." Jenna agreed. Even Rose, who'd always been the most annoyed whenever Molly chose Carla over them, was quick to forgive.

"Definitely loyal," said Rose, "but I have to say, you're one of the most aggressive Hufflepuffs I've ever met."

They all laughed again, and the conversation moved on to other, more mundane things. The four of them had the best Hogsmeade weekend they'd had in years, until Rose looked out the window as they realized it was almost time to get back.

"No way," said Rose softly. "Only yesterday she was whining about how Patrick should be going out with her instead of Claire. Now look at her! That little player. What a-"

She was cut off by a pained gasp from Molly. For what they were all looking outside were two people walking hand in hand. One was Carla Vane looking smug. And the other was, without a doubt, Callum Finnigan.

* * *

><p><strong>So sorry about the long wait! My last few weeks have been pretty busy. Also, I've had a slight case of writer's block, so this chapter is shorter than the others and maybe not as good. Sorry! Reviews would be much appreciated-I don't respond to them much, but I do read and try my best to act upon every one of them. Thank you!<strong>


	7. Changed Perspectives

Molly was sitting in the alcove on the sixth floor that, over the years, she'd come to think of as "her spot." She went there whenever she wanted to be alone. Social butterfly that she was, this didn't happen often, but when it did, she was glad to have the perfect place.

Not bothering to try and stem the tears that were flowing down her cheeks, Molly thought over the events of the day once more. She'd been having a great day after the run-in with Carla, but when she'd seen Carla and Callum together, which she estimated had been about half an hour ago, possibly longer, the first emotion she felt was shock. That wore off after thirty seconds, followed by a jumble of thoughts and feelings, the most prevalent of which was the need to cry. She mumbled something to her friends about having to go, and hurried out of the Three Broomsticks, back to the castle, and finally to her alcove, where she'd sunk to the floor and given in to tears. Her friends had sensed she wanted to be alone and hadn't followed, for which she was grateful. Her mind had been racing ever since.

_I thought he liked me. We went to Slughorn's Christmas party together, didn't we? He had a good time. I mean, we were never officially going out, but we've been on a few dates. And I've liked him forever! I bet Carla doesn't even like him-she's probably just trying to get revenge on me. Bitch. I can't believe he fell for her tricks. How could he do this to me?_ And she would be overcome by a fresh wave of tears every time she reached this point in her train of thought.

She was thinking that she'd better pull it together and get back to her common room because it was almost curfew when she heard a voice call her name.

"Molly?"

Molly looked up and saw Nathaniel Goldstein standing there. She didn't have the heart to be rude to him, nor the mind to wonder why he was their. "Hi, Nathaniel," she said miserably.

"Are you-er-are you all right? No, you're obviously not," he mumbled, as if to himself. "What I mean to say is, what's wrong?"

He had crouched down next to her, and when Molly met his eyes, she found herself blurting out the whole story. Nathaniel listened closely and nodded along. If the story affected him in any way, he kept it well hidden.

"-and I've been here ever since," Molly finished. "I hate her so much."

"I bet," Nathaniel said. "I know very well how it feels to be in that situation." The expression on his face made Molly shiver slightly, though she didn't know why. Nathaniel stretched his legs out so he was sitting beside her, leaning against the wall. Molly glanced sideways at him. His brown curls were tousled from when he'd run his hands through them during her story, and his brown eyes were full of sympathy, with something more intense underneath. He wasn't half bad looking. Molly was shocked at herself for thinking that and immediately gave herself an inward scolding. But that small part of her brain simply would not be repressed.

"So," she said, mostly to distract the said part of her brain, "how've you been lately?"

"Apart from having to watch the girl I love be with someone else yet again? Oh, I've been great," Nathaniel said sarcastically.

Molly was slightly startled by his tone, as well as his response. "Oh," she said, not knowing what else could be said to that. But her brain was working hard. She knew he'd liked her back in third year, but by the time fourth year started he'd stopped stalking her, so she'd figured he was over it. But what if he hadn't been? What if he still liked her? _No, _she thought,_ that's ridiculous. It's been four years! Who likes someone for that long?_ She thought of Claire. She'd liked Patrick for about that long. And Claire and Nathaniel did have similar personality types..._No. I'm sure there are lots of girls that are with someone right now. I'm not the only one._

But she did start to look at him in a new light as they sat in silence for a while. Silence that ended as they heard footsteps. "Oh, shit," Molly whispered. "It's probably Filch." As far as the students could tell, Argus Filch was ancient, as he'd been the caretaker in the days of their parents. Age had not helped his disposition, and he had a far fouler temper than he had in the old days.

Nathaniel looked worried. "We'd better go. I don't want breaking curfew to go on my record." Old Molly would have scoffed at that statement, but the New, More Considerate Molly thought that was an admirable thing to worry about.

The two took off, moving as quickly and quietly as they could. "Where do we go? There's nowhere to hide!" Nathaniel hissed.

Heart pounding, Molly scanned the walls for doors. The footsteps were coming closer. Finally, she found one. She rattled the doorknob. Locked. The two hurried down the corridor, panic increasing. They reached another door. Molly grabbed the handle and yanked it open. "In here!" she said. She seized Nathaniel by his robes and dragged him through the door, shutting it behind them.

Through the darkness, Molly realized they were in a broom cupboard. A very small one. To try and avoid the awkwardness of the situation, she pressed her ear against the door, waiting. The footsteps were close now. She saw a shadow moving past the door and heard a wheezing that unmistakably belonged to Filch. Gradually, the footsteps faded away.

"Okay, he's-"

Molly had turned around and stopped abruptly when she saw how close Nathaniel was standing. She looked up in his eyes and saw that he was gazing down at her.

"Molly-"

"I'm an idiot," she cut him off, heart beating in anticipation.

"I know," he said softly, and he leaned down to kiss her.

* * *

><p>"Hey Molly!"<p>

Molly turned around hopefully. She brightened when she saw who it was. "Hi, Nathaniel!" She was so glad it was him and not Callum Finnigan or someone of his caliber. Even Albus Potter wasn't as wonderful as Nathaniel.

"I was wondering if maybe you changed your mind about Hogsmeade?" He looked anxious.

Molly was surprised. "Why would I?"

"Well, I thought maybe you just said yes because you were caught up in the moment or something, and didn't actually like me." He stopped as he saw the incredulous expression on her face. "I should've known you wouldn't be that capricious. See you in a couple weeks, then." And, smiling, he strode off.

"What does that even mean?" she called after him, her smile just as wide as his. She turned to her friends. "Rose?"

"Variable or flighty. In other words, always changing your mind. God, Molly, why do I always have to be your personal dictionary?"

Molly ignored Rose's complaint. "Oh. Well, that's creative," she said, chuckling slightly.

"Molly, what is going on? I thought you hated him," Claire said, looking extremely confused.

"I only ever hated him in third year," Molly corrected her. "After that I just didn't particularly like him. But yesterday I realized how stupid I'd been."

"I'm with Claire," Jenna said, "I have no idea what's going on. But I have to admit, I always thought he was nice."

"Stay away, Jenna, he's mine now and I'm never leaving him." Laughing, Molly, walked off to her next class.

The other three stared at Molly's retreating back. "Definitely a loyal Hufflepuff," Jenna observed proudly.

* * *

><p><strong>I'll admit the kiss-inside-the-broom-cupboard was a little predictable but I couldn't resist! And I had a little fun paralleling the last scene with Molly's scene in the prologue...kudos to anyone who noticed! :) Two chapters to go...actually three counting the epilogue...hopefully I'll get them done quickly!<strong>


	8. Rose Finds Her Ravenclaw Learning

Yawning, Rose Weasley entered her Charms classroom and collapsed into her seat. She was exhausted, not because she partied madly every single night like people thought she did, but because she was just not a morning person. The class passed by in a haze of tiredness, accompanied by the soundtrack of the professor's voice. The rest of the morning followed the same pattern, and she was relieved when it was finally lunchtime.

Rose joined her friends at the Slytherin table. She'd begun to feel a bit left out lately. Jenna had Andrew, Claire had Patrick, and Molly had Nathaniel. Rose had no one. Not even a friend that would rather spend time with her than their respective boyfriend. At least, that was how Rose felt. She knew she ought to tell herself off for being ridiculous, but she really believed that it was true. Not that she blamed them; she'd probably like hanging out with her boyfriend better than with her friends. If she had one, of course, which she didn't. Rose sighed.

"What's the matter?" Claire asked, seeming concerned.

Fortunately, Rose had a gift for thinking fast under pressure. "Classes," she said, which wasn't actually a lie. "They're all _so_ boring. I absolutely cannot wait to get out of here."

To Rose's consternation, the other six looked at her like she'd gone mental. "Seriously?" asked Nathaniel. "You're excited to leave Hogwarts?"

"Well, yeah," Rose said, slightly confused. _I'm not a school-worshipping freak like you_, she added to herself. It had taken her a while to adjust to having to hang around with Nathaniel all the time, and even then, the week before school ended, he still annoyed her sometimes. "I'm tired of being in school and I want to try my hand in the real world. You don't want to leave?"

"Not at all," said Molly. Rose had thought Molly would agree with her, but apparently not. "I love it here. I mean, yes, it's school, and learning, but it's also so much more. Think of all the things you'll never get to do again, all the people you'll never see. Doesn't it make you feel sad?"

Rose thought about it. "I don't know. Nothing I've done that I would want to do again is something exclusive to Hogwarts, and the only people I'd really want to see again are all of you, and we'll all keep in touch." She was suddenly worried. "We will, won't we?"

"Obviously," said Jenna, in her matter-of-fact but reassuring way.

"So then I have nothing to lose," Rose concluded.

"If you say so," said Andrew, smirking slightly. "But mark my words, on the last day of school you'll be a mess."

Rose just scoffed at him, but his rather foreboding words kept coming back to her for the rest of the day.

_Will I really miss it here?_ she wondered on her way to Potions. _I've wanted to leave from practically the moment I arrived. But I suppose it _is_ a cool place...I don't know. I guess we'll see._

"We'll be trying our hand at brewing Felix Felicis today," said Slughorn. A murmur of surprise and excitement swept the room. "This is an extremely tricky and complicated potion, but you're the most advanced Potions class I've had in a good few years, so I think you'll be up to the challenge. Turn to page 523 in your books."

The class did so. Rose heard Jenna, the only of her friends to continue in Potions, let out a groan. Rose glanced at the page herself and saw that Slughorn was right: she'd never seen a more difficult looking potion. But Rose was a Potions whiz, and she went to gather ingredients with a sense of excitement.

Halfway through the class found all the students sweating, biting their nails, cursing, and having various minor disasters with their potions. All except one. Rose was in her element. She was throwing in ingredients, stirring her cauldron, and checking the instructions all at the same time, as if she'd been born to make potions.

"Bloody hell, Rose, how are you doing that?" Jenna demanded, staring into her own cauldron, which was filled with thick purple sludge and emitting lilac-colored smoke. Jenna coughed and waved some out of her face.

Rose glanced over. "You stirred it five times instead of six," she said perfunctorily. "Oh, and your hair's turning purple, just so you know."

Jenna looked horrified. "What?" But Rose was already back in the zone. Jenna Vanished her failed potion, hastily excused herself from the class, and came back ten minutes later, her hair restored to its shade of lime green. "Don't get your potion near me," she warned. "Do you have any idea how hard it is to put a lasting Color Changing charm on hair?"

"No, because I don't have the insecurity needed to make me change the color of my hair," came Rose's drawling voice. "And nothing's going to happen to your hair. My Felix Felicis doesn't turn hair purple."

"That's what you think," Jenna muttered, but she was suppressing a smile.

"What?" Rose asked suspiciously, noticing her friend's mysterious smile.

"Nothing," said Jenna innocently. But unfortunately for her, Rose was the only one Jenna couldn't fool with her expert Slytherin lying skills. All Rose had to do was raise an eyebrow skeptically, and Jenna said, "All right, all right. I was smiling because it's nice to have good old Rosie back."

Rose couldn't decide to be more scandalized by what Jenna had said or by being called "Rosie," so she simply turned back to her potion, although some of the abandoned feelings she'd had earlier that day had dissipated.

Just then the bell rang, and Rose looked up from her cauldron, surprised. "Goodness, time certainly does fly when you're having fun!" Slughorn exclaimed. He was met by stony-faced students, none of whom had had any fun, except Rose, who nodded along with Slughorn. "Everyone put a sample on my desk. But don't worry: I'll be more likely to offer extra points to those of you who brewed acceptable potions than to take points off those who did not. Again, this was a very tricky potion."

The class did as he instructed and rushed out. Rose, however, was lagging behind, and told Jenna to go on ahead. "Look sharp, there, Miss Weasley," Slughorn said jovially. "Anything I can do for you?"

"No," said Rose. "I was just thinking that I'm going to miss Potions when I leave." She surprised herself with these words, but she realized that they were true. She _was _going to miss Potions. Rose had never noticed the happy feeling that bubbled up inside her each time over the past seven years that she'd sat down in front of a cauldron, and now it was almost too late. She sighed.

"Well, actually, Miss Weasley," Slughorn said slowly. "You might not." Rose looked at him quizzically, and he continued. "I'm getting on in years, and I'm going to need someone to replace me soon. I've been looking out for possible candidates, but none have been suitable. You, however, are the best student I've taught in decades. Better even than your mother, perhaps."

Rose swelled with pride. She'd heard the phrases "nothing like your mother," "You'd think she'd do well, considering who her mother is," and "Are you sure she's Hermione Granger's daughter?" too many times for her to count, but now, for the first time in her life, she was being told she was _better _than her mother at something. "Thank you," she said sincerely. Slughorn smiled and went on.

"I would like to offer you the post of Potions Master, or Mistress, as it were, here at Hogwarts. Not now, you're still young, but in a few years. I'd have to clear it with the Headmaster, of course, but I'm sure he'd be willing. What do you say, would you be interested?"

Rose beamed her. "Yes, sir, I would. I'd like that a lot."

Rose Weasley, party animal, Ravenclaw-in-denial, and slacker extraordinaire never imagined until that moment that she'd become a Hogwarts professor.

* * *

><p><strong>I'm sooo sooo sooo sorry for the wait! I know that to keep using school as an excuse is lame...but it's true. I'll try to finish this up within 2 weeks! Also, I wanted this chapter to be called "Rose Finds Her Ravenclaw Love of Learning" but it exceeded the limit by one character...ah fate...<strong>


	9. Better Late Than Never

The last week of school flew by, and before Rose, Molly, Claire, and Jenna knew it, it was the last day of school. For six years, they'd welcomed this day happily, but the seventh and final last day of school found the four friends, and most of their classmates, in a state of sadness and nostalgia.

The seventh years had to meet in the Great Hall an hour and a half before the Leaving Feast so the professors could say a few words about them all. Then each student's name and House would be called, they would rise, their classmates and teachers would applaud, and they'd sit down again. Rose couldn't really see the point of this, but thought it was a nice gesture all the same.

The other years were still finishing their exams, but the seventh years had started their N.E.W.T.s slightly earlier than the rest of the school, so they had the day off to do whatever they wanted. The day before, Claire had proposed that the four of them walk around the school and grounds to reminisce about all their years at Hogwarts. The other three readily agreed. To Rose's delight, Andrew, Patrick, and Nathaniel weren't coming. It would be the four of them, just like old times.

They'd decided to start their tour at Ravenclaw Tower and go down from there. Rose waited in the common room for her friends, and soon enough she heard Molly's voice outside the door saying, "Oh, I don't know! Blimey, why can't they have a password or something like the other Houses?"

"Hufflepuff doesn't have a password," said Claire's voice. Rose was rather surprised that Claire couldn't figure out the riddle, but Claire had always been more book-smart than good at logic.

"Yes, but we have a strong security system _that still makes it possible to go in!_ Ravenclaws always have to make the rest of us feel stupid, don't they?"

"That's right, we do," said Rose. While it would have been amusing to listen to her friends try and figure out the answer to the riddle, she didn't want to cut in to the few hours they had left at Hogwarts.

"There you are!" said Molly, looking exasperated but smiling all the same. "Let's go!"

As they descended the spiral staircase, Jenna said, "Rose, just out of curiosity, what was the answer to the riddle?"

"What was the riddle?"

"'What takes in water and gives out fire?'"

Rose thought for a minute. "Dragon," she said. "They drink water and breathe fire."

"_Oh_," said the other three at once.

"How did we not get that?" Claire wondered rhetorically.

"Do you remember the time Molly thought there was a dragon in the kitchen?" Jenna asked, grinning.

The others laughed and the walk down memory lane began. They walked through the castle and then onto the grounds, where they stopped by the Quidditch pitch to allow Rose and Jenna a few moments to sigh and remember some eventful Quidditch games they played in. Then they all visited Hagrid, who was getting on in years but was always up for a visit from four of his favorite students.

All too soon, it was time to go to the Great Hall. The four friends sat down together and looked around at their fellow seventh years. Some of them, like Rose and Jenna, appeared bored, but were given away by a slight trembling of lips. Others, like Claire and Molly, weren't trying to hide their watering eyes.

"Welcome," said the Headmaster. "Today is a bittersweet day. We see our seventh years go off into the world, and yet as they go, they are walking away from those of us who must stay behind at Hogwarts."

The room was filled with hearty sniffs as the professors began to say their part. Rose didn't listen to every word they said, but it was all pretty much the same: hard work, determination, respect, and success.

Finally, everyone finished speaking, and the headmaster said, "Now I will call the names of all our graduating students. As I call your name, please stand up, and then you may say any words you might want to say before you leave."

And the process began. Most of the students thanked their professors and then sat down again. But Rose was waiting. Being Scorpius Malfoy's classmate for seven years had taught her nothing if not that he always had to be different and dramatic about everything. Soon enough, his name was called.

"Scorpius Malfoy, Slytherin."

Scorpius stood up. Rose gazed at him. She realized that this was probably the last time she would ever see him, and she'd never told him how she felt. Yes, there was no point denying it now: she felt a strange attraction to him. She always had, in fact. Rose sighed. Of course she would realize all this the very moment it was too late.

"I have two things to say," said Scorpius. Two things? Yes, he was definitely changing it up. "First, thanks to all the professors and classmates that have made my time at Hogwarts the best seven years of my life." Rose was unimpressed. That wasn't the different and dramatic speech she'd been hoping for. "Second, I'd like to tell Rose Weasley that I've loved her for the past seven years of my life."

Rose literally thought her heart had stopped beating. First she turned very pale, and then very red as the every eye in the room fixed itself upon her. Then what he'd said sunk in. When it did, the only thing she wanted to do was throw herself on him and tell him she loved him too, but she really didn't want to make more of a scene than she already had, though technically it was Scorpius who'd made a scene and she'd just been a victim.

She looked back at him. He was looking at her expectantly. Rose smiled more sincerely than she had in a long time. Seeming satisfied, Scorpius sat down. There was a silence, and then hesitant applause. The headmaster looked rather baffled, but he continued reading the names.

Rose spent the time thinking of what she should say, and by the time she heard "Rose Weasley, Ravenclaw" she had it all planned out. She stood up.

"I'd like to thank everyone at Hogwarts for...well, for everything. I'm going to miss it here. Also, Scorpius, I love you too." Rose sat down, and there was applause, along with a few whoops and wolf-whistles.

"Well, ah, thank you Rose," said the headmaster somewhat awkwardly. "That concludes our ceremony. Seventh years, you will be missed here at Hogwarts, but all of you will go on to do great things, and remember that Hogwarts will always be here if you want to come back."

The room was filled with applause and cheers, as well as people hugging and crying. Molly, Claire, and, surprisingly, Jenna were sobbing. Even Rose had tears streaming down her face, but she retained some dignity by not making any noise. The four friends all hugged each other. Then Rose was caught in a Ravenclaw group hug, all her housemates yelling "Ravenclaw forever!" The other three houses followed suit, and the Great Hall became a mess of noise.

Thankfully, Rose managed to escape the crowd into a corner. She didn't do hugs. She heard a voice in her ear, a very familiar voice.

"Really?"

She looked over. It was, as she'd known, Scorpius. She observed him. That one word was packed full of so much meaning, and she responded with simply, "Yes."

He smiled and wrapped his arms around her. "Took us long enough, didn't it? We had seven years but we had to wait till the very last moment."

Rose laughed. "Well, better late than never."

* * *

><p><strong>Woohoo fast update! And fortunately, I've already written the epilogue so that will come almost immediately!<strong>


	10. Epilogue

Malfoy Manor was much more friendly and welcoming than it had been in the old days. They were scattered throughout the grounds, the four families. The adults were sitting in the grass together, still young enough that chairs weren't necessary.

The red-haired woman who taught Potions at Hogwarts sat beside her blond husband, who was an Auror. She looked around at all her friends, marveling at how much they'd all grown up. Claire wrote for the _Daily Prophet_, while her husband Patrick was a retired Quidditch player. Molly was very successful in the Department of Magical Law Enforcement and Nathaniel worked as a Healer. Jenna, her hair at last its natural black, and Andrew were partners in the Muggle Liaisons Office.

"What are you thinking, Rose?" asked Claire, for Rose had a smile on her face.

"I was just remembering when we were at school," she said. "On our first day, who would've guessed we'd end up where we are now?"

Molly laughed. "Back then, you hated Scorpius, Jenna had no idea Andrew even existed, Claire was too shy to talk to Patrick, and I thought of Nathaniel as that nerdy kid who followed me around."

There were many chuckles following these words. "And the four of us didn't really know each other for a while, d'you remember?" said Jenna.

"And your hair was that horrible yet sexy shade of green," Andrew said to his wife with a grin.

Lots of reminiscing ensued, and Rose took the time to observe the kids running happily around on the lawn.

Her own son, Colin, had inherited the Weasley hair as well as Scorpius's gray eyes. He sat with Madeleine Goldstein, his girlfriend. They had both graduated from Hogwarts the day before, which was the reason for the gathering. Madeleine was the spitting image of Molly, but in personality she was more like her mellow father.

Elizabeth Chase, red-haired like Patrick, and Scott McRae, who looked like Andrew did at his age, were entering their seventh year. They had liked each other for ages, and everyone knew it except for them. Even so, it was probably only a matter of time before they started going out.

Nick Malfoy's white-blond hair and blue eyes made him very popular with the girls of Hogwarts. At fifteen, he had already had several girlfriends and was currently with a blonde-hair-blue-eyes airhead of a girl. Rose hoped her son would soon notice that Caitlin McRae, who looked just like Jenna except for the dyed red streaks in her hair, was the right girl for him. They were best friends, and Caitlin had loved him since third year.

Sam Malfoy, Sean Chase, and Jon McRae would soon start their fourth year. They were sitting with Alexis Goldstein and Alice McRae, who were going into their second year. From the shouting, blushing, and weird stunts that were going on, Rose deduced that they were playing Truth or Dare.

Finally, Olivia Malfoy, May Goldstein, and Ingrid McRae were sprinting around, shrieking and laughing, before tumbling onto the grass where they lay for a while. They were ten and all dying to go to Hogwarts. However, their parents, as all parents do, told them to enjoy their childhood while it lasted.

Rose turned her attention back to the conversation. "Jenna, I remember you used to have no idea what you wanted to do with your life, and now here you are, with as successful a career as any of us," Molly said, smiling.

"Oh yeah!" said Jenna. "Slughorn was so annoyed during my career advice session, remember?" Everybody laughed.

"And Claire was always so shy and unsure of herself, yet now she practically radiates confidence," Rose said fondly.

"You always hated school," Claire said, blushing at the compliment. "None of us would've guessed you'd end up as a professor!"

"Well, Potions was always my best subject."

"Molly was terrible, though, remember? Always blowing up stuff."

"Yeah, but she turned out all right. Though I did wonder, sometimes, when she'd look longingly over at the popular girls…now she's as loyal as a dog, isn't she?" Jenna's assessment received murmurs of agreement.

"I was a self-obsessed prat back then, until that day in Hogsmeade when I realized how horrible I'd been," Molly remarked cheerfully.

"Wasn't that the day you fell in love with me?" asked Nathaniel.

"Mm-hm. Can't believe it took me that long!"

"Aww."

"Quit with the sappiness, would you?"

As Rose looked around at her friends, her bizarre, polar-opposite, wonderful friends, she realized Jenna was right. They _had _turned out all right. It had been a long, wild journey, but none of them would have changed a thing.

* * *

><p><strong>Well, it's done! I was debating about whether to put this in or just leave off at the previous chapter, but I figured I might as well put it in since I'd already written it. Thanks to all you readers and reviewers, I really appreciate it!<strong>


End file.
